Home
by Fowlfan5
Summary: What happens- and what will he learn- when the Doctor finally meets his daughter? A fluffy Christmas fanfic, rated T just because. One-shot. Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything affiliated with it, or mentioned in this story.


**I haven't been on fanfiction in forever, as my internet went out for a couple months, but feeling Christmasey and fluffy, I decided it was a good time to write a new fanfic. Please let me know what you think!**

"Whenever and wherever you like," she had promised. And then, in a pained tone that she tried desperately to mask, "But not all the time. One physcopath per tardis, don't you think?" He had managed a sad smile at the time, acknowledging her insinuation. But his heart was still broken, torn into two. One half of this was due to the loss of his best friends, but the other... That was caused by his signifigant half, not traveling with him. His wife, his one true love. Well, he had had his wife back on Gallifrey. And there was Rose Tyler of course, but she had gotten his clone to appease her. Part of him truly cared for her, but just not that way. And his wife from Galifrey had been dead for millenia. It pained him that every day he forgot one more detail of his home planet, and now he feared her face was one of those forgotten details. He knew he must of loved her. But he didn't know how. But one thing he did know was that he loved River Song. She was his bride, the woman who had murdered him, tricked him, and finally, gotten him to marry her, in such an unconventional manner that it seemed appropriate. It had been forced by her, but everyday it seemed more and more like his idea. River left, promising to get Amy to write the note in the end of the book, and proceeded to zap herself away, not wanting the Doctor to see her cry. She reappeared back at her house, only eighty years in the future. It was her favourite place in time for some reason. The 90s. Not the time for disco like the previous decade, with neon and all of those tacky arrangements that River didn't particularily care for. Still, technology was great, and pollution was good, considering. And she could leave any dependants unattended without being questioned. At least, not too extensively. Then again, that's when a time travelling watch comes in handy.

She would write her story shortly. In the meanwhile, she walked down the sidewalk into her average, suburbian house, laughing at the irony of it. She was a typical person, almost, and this home of hers was a large lot considering it was on the outskirts of London. Snow began to lightly fall, and suddenly River remembered what day it was. She pulled her coat tightly over her dress, wishing it was warmer, and stepped into her house.

"I'm home!" she yelled cheerfully. A young girl, about four, came zooming around the corner.

"You're home!" she exclaimed exhuberantly. River bent her knees, ruffling the girl's sandy brown hair. It hung in gentle waves to her shoulder, and seemed to always be ruffled or messy. Her eyes were a deep blue-ish green colour that seemed to encapture the spirit, heart, soul, love, excitement for life and enthusiasm of her father, of whom she had never met. The girl reached her small arms around her mother's neck.

"I missed you, Mommy," she whispered softly, the sincere heart in every word chipping chunks out of River's heart.

"I missed you too, darling," River whispered back, words choked full of emotion. Her daughter seemed to notice the distress in her tone and pulled back.

"Don't cry," she gurgled, wiping at her mother's moist cheeks with her chubby fists. River laughed, and pulled her in tighter for a hug.

"I don't know where you get that, Holly," River laughed.

"Get what?" Holly asked. River didn't bother to respond, knowing that she wouldn't know what she was talking about when she meant her kind, sweet, nurturing tendancies. River was rather convinced that they came from her father. He had just mended her wrist. Well, in her timestream. That stupid man. The stupidly sweet, kind man.

"How long was I gone sweetie?"

Holly shrugged. "Eleven point five hours, or six hundred and ninty minutes, or fourty one thousand four hundred seconds."

"Good girl!" River exclaimed, proud. She knew her daughter was extremely smart. She had been raised by a genius and had two geniuses as parents. "You're becoming quite the mathematician."

"Yes, I think I like it better than art. May I drop art?"

"No," River said, laughing calmly. "When something's hard, we take extra classes, as to get better."

"I know," Holly agreed, pouting.

River exhaled deeply. "I am so sorry I was gone so long, darling. I meant to be quicker. My watch isn't as exact as it used to be, I think it may be fizzling out."

"It's okay, Mommy, I understand." River shook her head, disappointed in herself. It wasn't that she didn't think two physcopaths should be in the TARDIS at the same time. If anything, two negatives make a positive, and crazy people are always more entertaining. She would follow that man anywhere, anytime, and more importantly, all the time.

But she couldn't. She had a daughter, and although he didn't know it yet, the Doctor did too. She kept waiting for an older version of him. Yet, she hadn't met one old enough. Well, not since Holly was born.

"Is Santa coming?" Holly asked, excited. "Did you talk to him while you were out visiting?"

River grinned. "Why, yes, I did! And he told me that you were very good, and not only is he bringing you presents tomorrow, but he also has a surprise for you tonight."

Holly bounced to her feet, excited. "Really? What?"

"Put on your coat, and let's get going." Holly and River got ready, and then walked to a corner cafe. It was a cozy little place that was even open on Christmas Eve, as to serve all of the skaters on the pond nearby. They were almost there when River saw the dark figure that she was expecting.

"Stay here," she whispered. Holly nodded intently, obeying her mother's request. It was no more peculiar than her usual ones, asking her to come to archelogical digs in Egypt and shopping sprees in Paris, all of which the four year old agreed to immediately. But there were times when her mother went on adventures with old friends which Holly knew she must not come on. Her mother said something about time streams, but that was often when Holly stopped listening, instead allowing her mind to drift to stories of Princes and their Queens. Little did she know, because of her these stories would one day become her real life adventures that she would live out. Like mother like daughter.

River walked into the cafe where she saw a man in a bow tie, suspenders and tweed jacket standing impatiently. She watched him check his hair self consciously in the rippled reflection of the cafe's windows and sniff his breath. River smiled. How cute, he was double checking himself.

"Hello sweetie," River gushed. The Doctor turned around, excited, and smiled.

"Hello wife," he replied, running his fingers through her tangled brown hair.

"You came," she said.

"Of course I did. You mailed me."

"I didn't know if you'd get it."

"You knew I'd get it. You carved it microscopically into the surface of the Hope Diamond. You know, when they figure out it's there, they are going to get very upset."

River grinned. "I know. That's why I did it," she laughed.

"So, where are we?" he asked. River smiled a sad smile.

"We just lost the Ponds." The Doctor nodded solemnly.

"Yes." Then his face erupted into a grin. "I'm about to get a new companion. She kisses me, but I tell her I have a wife. She doesn't really listen, but-"

"What else is new?" River laughed.

"-...Well, yeah. But I ward her off, eventually. Anyways, you get really mad, so I thought I'd warn you."

"And is she coincidentally pretty?"

"I know you don't believe me, but it genuinely is a coincidence."

"Lightning doesn't strike the same place twice, sweetie," River said, laughing it off.

"Yes, and it's just a coincidence that all of your guards at the prison were rather toned men?" River laughed.

"Oh sweetie, that was no coincidence."

The Doctor blushed slightly, but for the most part, laughed it off. "You were still upset."

"Well, now I'll have to get really mad, I suppose," she teased. "Overreact so you remember it correctly."

"Well then, I guess it's a good thing that I bought you a diamond necklace."

"With a pendant?" River asked, intrigued.

"No, a studded chain thingy. It swoops down and has these pendanty chain things around it."

"What good descriptive words," River laughed.

"I found the add in the newspaper I took from the cafe, this cafe actually, the day you got mad."

"Well then, I guess I'll have to pick a necklace and get the company to place an add for it."

The Doctor smiled. "I suppose so."

"I'm sure it will be beautiful," River said, reassuring him. She smiled, laughing fondly.

"It fits its suitor," he whispered. River smiled.

"Merry Christmas Eve, sweetie."

"Merry Christmas," the Doctor swooned. "So, why'd you call me here?"

"I got you a present," River said, nervously biting her lip. The Doctor looked up, seeing the festive plant hanging overhead.

"Mistletoe?" he asked. River leaned in and kissed him.

"Well, yes. But not quite. Holly."

The Doctor made a perplexed face. "What do you mean by that?" he asked, grinning.

River guestered to a shadowed figure who began to walk towards them. "Well, I was waiting for you to be old enough to remember, but you haven't been yet, so I decided to speed up the process." The figure, who now appeared to be a little girl, was hiding behind River's coat. It draped to her knees, cut by a belt in the middle.

"Who's that?" the Doctor asked, still not catching on.

"Doctor, this is Holly. Your daughter." River turned around, getting down on one knee. "Honey, this is your dad." River urged her daughter in her father's direction and turned back to face the Doctor. "She has your eyes. And your scattered mind. She's phenominal at math and science, but she spends most of her time reading." The Doctor, in shock, got down on one knee.

"Hi," he said. Holly waved timidly. The Doctor took his daughter's hand and shook it.

"I'm the Doctor. You can call me that. Or, uh, Dad, or Father, or Pa."

"Not Pa, that's odd," River chimed in. The Doctor laughed.

"Okay, not Pa, apparently. Whatever you like," he laughed.

Holly shook his hand back. "I'm Holly... Dad?" The Doctor smiled.

"Dad sounds great," he said. He was still shaking her hand and grinning, a little over enthusiastically.

"Doctor, do you want to come home with us?" The Doctor looked up, still completely shocked.

"We have a home?"

"Well, we have a home if you want it to be ours." The Doctor finally finished shaking the little girl's hand.

"Yes?"

"Well then, let's go," River said, smiling. The Doctor stood up, letting go of the little girl's hand, only to find that she was clutching the leg of his pants. He smiled, genuinely touched.

"So, tell me more about this 'home'."

**I hope that was good! Please review, all critisism is appreciated and treasured!**

**~~Fowlfan5**


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